Before we get
started we need to explain the format of our reviews over the past six years.
Readers will have noted that an entire review is laid out on one long page
instead of 15-20 short pages. While it takes longer for a single page of this
length to load we have designed the layout so that text appears first and
graphics last so you can start reading before completion of loading. We decided
not to split over 15-20 pages as many people find it annoying to have
interruptions once they start getting into a review. It also means you can use
the bullet list of contents above to go straight to parts that are of interest.
We'd like our readers to let us know which method they prefer by providing
feedback in our Forums. In any case, by the time you finish reading this paragraph
the
page should have loaded. Another thing we try to do is shield our readers from a
barrage of numbers so instead of the exact result of every benchmark, our charts
show comparative performance without being speckled with numbers - although in
each case the Y-Axis is clearly labeled so that information is readily available
if needed. We also prefer to let benchmarks speak for themselves rather than
over-analyzing in detail that may put off
some readers.

Introduction

Buying a
motherboard these days is quite a difficult task since, in terms of performance,
there is very little to choose between the top contenders. Brand loyalty is one
route but leaves the feeling that something good could be missed out on through
lack of awareness of the various offerings. Manufacturers have had a tricky time
and most have been forced into an "arms race" of adding more and more
features to make their boards stand out. A recent example is the trend towards
putting large amounts of copper onboard with little performance gain to show for
it but at a disproportionate cost. Why did they do it? Simply because people
choose motherboards based on reading the specifications in a quantitative fashion.
We think that far greater value for the customer can be attained by putting
features (software and hardware) in the package that gives them tangible
benefits.

ASUS are a
prime example of this. Their strategy is to lead through innovation and not
follow the herd. Readers will already be familiar with products such as the Eee
range and other home entertainment products they have developed. The ROG
(Republic of Gamers) brand is rapidly gaining popularity with extreme gaming and
overclocking workshops and seminars being held in many countries. The selection
of prizes given out at these events shows how closely ASUS understand the needs
and aspirations of their target audience. We've been impressed for some time now
with the feature set of ASUS motherboards and think it's now time to review them
with a focus on those features and not a plethora of benchmarks comparing 20+
boards that happen to perform within 1% of each other. Today the board in
question is the Maximus III Gene, a flagship socket 1156 product for Intel i5
and i7 (8XX series) processors.

Board
Features

A brief summary of the main features follows:

Bearing the Hallmarks of their
High-end Heritage
ASUS’ Maximus III Series motherboards are designed to deliver the
no-holds-barred gaming performance and gamer-tailored features that have earned
ROG its renown amongst gamers. Armed with the best components and top-end
technologies, these motherboards ensure users the best possible and most
immersive gaming experience on the P55 platform.

There is no doubting the quality
of the components used here from the Japanese capacitors to solid buttons
onboard.

Designed for Maximum Immersion
Maximus III Series motherboards are packed with advanced gaming features that
deliver the best in-game experience, and give users a decisive edge over their
opponents.

There are a number of well
thought out features designed to complement each other and we're still
experimenting with them.

GameFirst
A unique traffic shaping technology, GameFirst manages the flow of traffic
according to users’ needs so that they can still perform web-based tasks,
download and upload files and engage in internet chats while maintaining the low
ping times needed to dominate their opponents during online gaming.

In practice we have never had
problems with latency but are not avid gamers so this form of quality of service
management will be valued by those who don't have a dedicated gaming machine and
like to multi-task with Spotify etc. in the background.

Speeding HDD
Utilising a dual channel design, Speeding HDD doubles data transfer rates,
slashing game loading and data access times. To enjoy this technology, users
simply have to connect two HDDs to the specially-marked SATA connectors on the
Maximus III Series motherboard. The drives are set-up automatically—no manual
configuration is required.

Traditional drives may not yet
benefit from this but many SSDs have already surpassed the capacity of SATA-2
(and SATA-3 is only double that of SATA-2) so many users will get significant value from
this.

SupremeFX X-Fi
With its premium components and support for Creative Labs’ acclaimed
Crystaliser, CMSS3D and EAX technologies, SupremeFX X-Fi delivers the most
realistic and accurate audio in games. This iteration of SupremeFX X-Fi also
supports Blu-ray output.

Previously a separate add-in
card, the X-Fi delivers crystal clear sound and if your case supports HD Audio
front connectors then the board has both HD and legacy connectors.

Designed for Maximum
Tweakability
Maximus III Series motherboards feature a revolutionary overclocking interface
dubbed ROG Connect. ROG Connect enables users to link up to the embedded iROG
controller via a separate PC—such as a notebook—connected via a USB cable.
This allows users to tune the main system at a purely hardware level in
real-time, as well as view POST code and hardware status readouts, on a notebook
or netbook.

Once this is enabled its like
being able to remotely control the PC setup. We used an Eee PC 901 to help find
the optimum settings and ROG Connect saved us many many reboot cycles.

Designed for Maximum
Compatibility
Memory is temperamental and often difficult to tune. ROG Maximus III Series
motherboards enable users to easily circumvent potential memory compatibility
issues with the inclusion of MemPerfect, a tool that automatically tests, fixes
and adjusts memory for the best possible performance. The result is greater
system stability, optimised speed and the ability to resolve issues quickly
without having to manually perform lengthy memory tests.

This BIOS memory checker can save
much anguish as it detects memory problems before booting into Windows and
having problems that may be hard to trace back to memory issues.

Designed for Users with
Differing Needs
While both Maximus III Series motherboards feature the same rich complement of
features to enhance users’ gaming and computing experience—such as ROG
Connect, GameFirst and MemPerfect—they are available in two different form
factors to cater to the needs of different users.

The ATX Maximus III Formula is
designed for hardcore gamers and performance seekers who demand the very best
specifications and superior extensibility. The mATX Maximus III GENE, on the
other hand, is designed for case modders and budget-conscious gamers who prefer
smaller machines, yet desire the power and features that only ROG can provide.

We prefer the smaller form factor
of the Gene. Screen shots of the various tools and utilities will be added soon,
after more detailed testing.

Board
Layout

The box comes
in a nice package that prominently displays the ROG logo showing that this is an
enthusiast and gamers motherboard.

It truly is
Windows 7 ready and everything was detected correctly during our 64-bit Windows
7 Pro setup. Installing the additional drivers and utilities that come with the
enclosed CD is still highly
recommended though.

The onboard
X-Fi supports EAX 4.0 for advanced HD sound and comes with a filter to eliminate
background noise while recording. We tested in both 5.1 and 7.1 channel modes
with no distortion and good separation of channels.

There are so
many features that the front and back of the box are not enough and an extra
flap is used to elaborate further. It also adds to the "gift box"
effect and may make a nice present this holiday season.

All
these features on a board that's not cluttered and is mATX! As well as the SLI/CrossFire
capabilities we can see that it is passively cooled with a big heatsink in the
bottom right. There is a twelve
phase power design consisting ofeight
phase CPU power,two phase VTT power and
two phase memory power. There are 7 SATA-2 ports and an E-SATA port header. The
four DDR3 slots operate in dual channel mode and support memory up to 16GB DDR3-2133
through the BIOS. The red button allows for recovery without clearing the BIOS
if settings are too extreme during overclocking. The addition of an
on/off switch helps testers or those not using a traditional case. A legacy PCI
slot is there for that old PCI RAID controller etc. you just cannot bear to part
with. RAID 0 and 1 is supported on the SATA-2 ports and will be cost-effective
until SSDs become mainstream.

PS/2 keyboard
connectors are the only look to the past and 8-channel audio is fully supported
and configurable when the full audio drivers are installed. The USB port on its
side is actually the ROG connector and allows a notebook to monitor and
configure the PC remotely. In practice this worked well with our Eee PC 901
using the supplied cable. Firewire and E-SATA (there's another E-SATA and
Firewire connector on the other side of the board for cases which have those
connectors on them) are included. The addition of a CMOS clear button on the back panel will
please overclockers and save tension reaching for a jumper with a pair of
long-nosed pliers while holding a torch between teeth and aiming it with tongue
manipulation....

Included in
the box are SATA cables with metal bars to make them easy to remove and still
keeping them securely in place against accidental removal - a long way from the
first SATA cables which are still supplied with many motherboards today. The ROG
cable is just a USB (male to male) lead. Padding on the back shield forms a snug fit
with the edge of the board and it is thickly constructed making it easy to fit
and remove without bending. The SLI bridge is easy to install and the most
notable thing is the Q-Connector for case wires (HDD, power, rest switch etc.)
so that they can be fitted there and the entire connector taken out as needed
for access. This is the sort of time saving feature that leaves people wondering
why no-one has thought of it before.

Socket 1156 processors,
like their socket 1366 siblings are renowned for their overclocking capabilities
so we started with high hopes for our i7-870 on this board using the extensive
options available in the BIOS. The BIOS is too detailed for us to explore in
this review but we recommend viewing this YouTube video here
and if your appetite is whetted for more information you can download the manual
from the ASUS Support Site.

Our first target was
3.5GHz and this was achieved without any noticeable increase in temperatures
(the Corsair H50 sealed processor watercooler is truly remarkable and completely
silent). All benchmarks were run without problems.

Incredibly,
the system posted and booted into Windows at 4GHz on stock voltage. Running the
Far Cry 2 benchmark caused a lockup though and we increased the processor voltage to 1.35V
before the CPU completed all tests without any problems. Even so, 1.35V is still
on the low side compared to some extremes we have seen with simple cooling.

We
conducted our tests at stock speeds though to allow readers to make comparisons
on a fixed baseline.

Test
Results

We
should explain why we have selected certain tests and why we repeated them for
1, 2, 3 and 4 cores. People buy motherboards for different uses and whether you
are a gamer who can make do with 2 cores or an avid video editor who will max
out 4 cores determines which processor you will pair the board with.

We
always advise not skimping on motherboard selection and purchasing a high end,
fully featured one like the Maximus III Gene (high end by socket 1156 standards
- half the price of a socket 1366 board) provides the greatest flexibility as we
will see. The benchmarks will show which processor is best suited for particular
uses. We are comparing the ASUS Maximus III Gene with the ASUS M4A79T Deluxe.

The
advantage of DDR3-2000 versus DDR3-1600 and the Dual channel memory can be
clearly seen. Synthetic benchmarks eliminate other bottlenecks and show the true
potential of increasing cores. Only users of the AMD platform will be able to
replace their current CPU with a 6-core "Bulldozer" one next year.
There are no plans for 6-core "Gulftown" (aka i9) processors able to
fit in a socket 1156 motherbaord.

Similar
situation with very linear scaling.

The
number of cores has no effect on memory bandwidth (fortunately there are no
single core Athlons in the AM3 configuration).

The
results here are quite interesting and a leveling off after 2 cores for the
i7-870 but more linear for the slower AMD X4 CPU. The results are above average
for boards of these chipsets.

Far
Cry 2 is widely acknowledged as being the game to bring any system to its knees
and we deliberately tested at the highest settings for each resolution and with
8x anti aliasing. Frame rates are perfectly playable at all resolutions (we
don't have a 30" monitor for the ultra high resolutions).

Contrasting
the FPS of Far Cry 2 is Tom Clancy's HAWX which is a cross between flight
simulator and air combat game and we achieved over 60 frames per second at all
resolutions.

Horror
games are currently popular and Resident Evil 5 has a great benchmarking
function built in. The board performed very well in this test.

Conclusion

We've
deliberately avoided getting bogged down with dozens of benchmarks comparing
many motherboards as this is one component where the performance varies by
usually less than 1% across the range. Readers looking to see these types of
benchmarks are pointed in the direction of AnandTech
and similar sites. We have already explored in depth and rest assured that the
Maximus III Gene is in the top 3 in virtually every test in available
benchmarks. Instead we are focusing on the added features and bundled software
that add unique value to each motherboard.

ROG
motherboards have never disappointed in terms of features and the Maximus III
Gene is no exception despite its mATX form factor which puts a pressure on
available "real-estate". The choice for this seems to be to allow the
board to be used for small form factor and easy to carry systems for gamers to
use in LAN parties and gaming conventions etc.

Overclocking
used to be the realm of the connoisseur requiring great skill/experience
and tenacity with nerves of iron required and the constant danger of
equipment destruction adding tension over the hours it took to get a stable
overclock. No longer is this the case now that ASUS have made it easy for
everyone (and no longer can we impress women at parties by introducing ourselves
as PC overclockers....) with PC stepup, iROG connect, MemPerfect and a host of
utilities within Windows making it easy to get professional results in a
fraction of the time and with little or no risk.

When everything is taken into account
we are convinced that the ASUS Maximus III Gene is the best socket 1156
motherboard currently available and is keenly priced for its target market.